


The Art of Quantum Physics

by esoteric_criterion



Series: Through the Hands of Time [1]
Category: Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-09
Updated: 2016-07-03
Packaged: 2018-04-08 12:08:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 18,215
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4304424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/esoteric_criterion/pseuds/esoteric_criterion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"What time is it?" Nightwing asked and his voice cracked badly, showing just how scratchy his throat was.</p><p>The Flash got the hint and zoomed away. He returned a moment later with a glass of water, passing it over to Nightwing. "Nine past three in the afternoon, why?"</p><p>Nightwing frowned as he took a sip of his drink. "I mean the date?"</p><p>"November 14th."</p><p>"Year?"</p><p>The Flash shared a confused look with Black Canary. "2010."</p><p>Nightwing stared at the now half-empty glass in his hands. His mind went completely blank. "I'm in...the past?" He muttered out loud. His voice echoed around the white room and back to his ears, sounding confused and small.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Singularity

It had been over a year after the death of Wally West. Artemis had long since rejoined the team as now blonde-haired Tigress, Kaldur had officially stepped back up as Team leader, and Bart had inherited the title of Kid Flash. The Justice League had returned from their trials and everything was calm once more.

It had also been one year since Nightwing had last come in direct contact with another hero. He'd taken an extended leave of absence from the Team and went completely under the radar. No hero dared to step foot in Blüdhaven. They all knew that Nightwing didn't like other heroes wandering his city without his permission, much like his mentor in Gotham.

In total, Nightwing had thirty-seven missed calls on his Team communicator, twenty-two on his private one, and forty-five messages on his cell phone. He'd only ever talked over the phone to Tim in the past three months, and that was only to discuss tactics quickly. Tim, though, had pried for answers on why Nightwing wasn't answering his communicator. Nightwing just ignored those comments.

Then he'd gotten an unexpected appearance from Batman one night on patrol. "I need your help." He'd said bluntly and simply.

Nightwing had frowned and crossed his arms, contemplating on whether or not he should help his former mentor.

In the end, he'd only agreed because it turns out that they were targeting the same group of people. Or rather, they were both being targeted.

•••••••••••••••

It had been a trap.

Batman had walked with Nightwing right into a goddamn trap. The men had been expecting them, waiting patiently for the original duo to arrive. There were so many of them; at least a thousand. There was no way either of them were coming out unscathed.

Nightwing and Batman found themselves surrounded by the men; mostly tough, burly henchmen, some with weapons. The main leader stood atop a pile of boxes on the other side of the room, a simple pistol in his hand. He smiled wickedly, his menacing eyes narrowing on the two. "Kill them." He ordered.

The men surged forward all at once.

Nightwing threw a punch at the nearest guy, swearing under his breath when the man intercepted his hand and twisted. These men were trained. Very well trained. His wrist ground and cracked and pain jolted up his arm as the guy twisted his hand too far. He used his other hand to nail the guy in the head. The man dropped to the ground, unconscious, and Nightwing pulled his injured hand closer to his body. It hurt like hell, but he didn't have much time to dwell on it.

Two more men came creeping up in the other's place. He took them both down with ease, using simple hits to their cerebrum to knock them out.

As he took down man after man, he realized that Batman was no longer behind him. Still aware of the enemies in front of him, he subconsciously swept the area for any sign of the Dark Knight. He found him not even a second later, making his way towards the leader as he shoved man after man out of his path.

Then Nightwing realized his mistake.

He'd been just a bit too busy focusing on Batman that he barely noticed a man sneaking up behind him. He whipped around, ready to counterattack, but was taken by surprise when the man swung at him with a metal baseball bat in hand. He leaned back, attempting to dodge, but it was too late.

The bat hit Nightwing square in the chest. He stumbled back from the force of it, instinctually curling up on himself as he felt a couple of his ribs cave and snap, gasping for breath. He saw the man ready for another swing.

This time, Nightwing was ready. He ducked under the bat as it came through and kicked out with his feet, sending the man crashing to the ground. He quickly jumped onto the man's stomach, pinning him down as he pressed the pressure point on the man's neck. The man fell limp.

Nightwing quickly scrambled back up as another guy came at him. This guy was noticeably bigger than the others, but he's taken on bigger people before. The only difference was that he was quickly surrounded by four more men equal to the big guy's size.

They all lunged at him at once, and he barely had enough time to duck out of the way as they all crashed into each other. The original big guy recovered first and rushed at him. Nightwing flipped the guy over his shoulder with ease and sent him crashing down hard to the floor. He blocked a strong punch from the next guy, and dodged a swipe of a knife from another. He pulled out his escrima sticks and powered them up, shocking the rest unconscious.

The original big guy, whom Nightwing thought to still be down, clambered back to his feet with a grunt, snatching up his fellow henchman's knife. He slashed at Nightwing with hard, heavy strikes that were only avoidable by using his acrobatics. Nightwing flipped his way around the man, studying, waiting for an opportunity. He backflipped out of the way one last time, planning to attack right after he regained his balance, but he was too slow.

The knife bit into the flesh on his calf and dug down towards the back of his knee. Nightwing bit his lips as his skin tore open, the cool air causing the wound to sting even more than it already was. He crashed to the ground, his concentration and balance completely lost, and gasped when his cracked ribs smacked hard against the cement.

The big guy jumped on top of him and forcefully ripped the knife out of his calf. He went to drive it back into Nightwing's body again, this time with a more lethal maneuver, but Nightwing slammed one of his escrima sticks into the man's side. The guy fell off of Nightwing's back, twitching and shaking violently from the electrical current coursing through his huge frame.

Nightwing got back to his feet shakily, blood dripping from the back of his leg onto the ground. He shifted as much of his weight off of his injured leg as possible but it still hurt like hell.

He held up his chin to show the enemy that he was unfazed by the attack, despite the throbbing in his leg. He glared at the men who circled around him as if daring them to come closer.

But they stayed put, opting to just eye him back. Nightwing was confused. Why weren't they attacking? Unless.....

He whipped around as his sensitive ears picked up the tell-tale click of pistol's hammer being cocked back. His eyes immediately locked onto said pistol. That was why the henchmen weren't attacking; they were giving another person a clear shot.

It was the leader's pistol, and it was aimed directly at him. The man laughed as Nightwing visibly tensed. "I'm afraid you're not getting out of here alive, pretty boy." He growled gleefully, pointer finger gripping the trigger tighter. There was a loud bang, and Nightwing started to move to the left side to avoid the bullet's path. The man must've either anticipated this, though, or he was just a terrible shot.

The bullet struck Nightwing straight in the right side of his stomach. It tore through the layers of gray Kevlar and imbedded itself into his body, and he couldn't hold back the pained cry that ripped it's way out of his throat. His mind buzzed, and the world began to tilt as he ungracefully fell. He screwed his eyes shut in agony and prepared himself for impact, but it never came.

Strong familiar arms were catching him, saving him from a heavy collision with concrete. He let himself be pulled into those arms as his head pounded with a sudden rush of blood to his head. All he could think about was the tearing sensation ripping its way through his body; the burning agony pulsing from the shot wound in his stomach.

He felt himself being half-dragged, half-carried somewhere. There was a lot of running, from both right next to him and behind him, and a lot of shouting. The only sensible words he could make out was faint words from the leader. "After them!" The deep, growly voice shouted loudly. He blocked the noises out, and instead began to rely on his other senses. His hand found its way to smooth Kevlar of his savior's suit and he gripped it tightly, gasping and sputtering for breath. His body shook involuntarily, harsh shivers coursing through his body as each step his carrier took sent new vibrations of pain through his body.

Suddenly, he felt his body being jerked to the left and cast into darkness. He heard the tell-tale click of a door closing then locking shut, then the sound of footfalls thundering by. He tried to calm his breathing as they passed, Batman's arms still wrapped around his torso. Then all was silent.

For a while, both of them were quiet. The only sound was the thick wheezing breaths that emanated from deep in Nightwing's chest. The room projected the sound so it sounded louder, echoing it as the sound waves bounced from wall to wall. Nightwing guessed the room was probably very small and nearly empty.

"That'll hold them off for a little bit. They'll realized we tricked them sooner or later." Batman's gruff voice told Nightwing as he settled down in a corner of the dark room. He felt his body being lowered to the ground, his head landing gently on someone's folded legs, most likely Batman's as they were the only people in there.

That little movement hurt, jostling Nightwing's wounds. His face scrunched up in pain and his breath hitched painfully. He swallowed hard and tried to concentrate on his breathing, but the pain was ever constant.

He blinked, his eyebrows crinkling in slight confusion as he felt something wet and sticky spreading though the layers of his suit. He instantly detected that it was blood from the stench of metal poisoning the air around them. Had he been bleeding before? Or was he really that much out of it that he never noticed?

He moaned in agony when he felt Batman's hand press down on the wound, trying to staunch the blood flow. The other hand was softly prodding at his body, most likely feeling for wounds. He listened as Batman quietly ran through the diagnosis aloud.

"Gunshot wound to the lower right abdomen; doesn't appear to have hit any vital organs. Moderate exsanguination; could turn severe. Three cracked ribs, four more possibly bruised. Sprained wrist; no major fracture or trauma to the bone. Knife-inflicted laceration to the left calf; an inch deep, four inches long. Suspected ligament damage. You have to start being more careful, Dick."

Nightwing chuckled in response, but instantly went into a harsh coughing fit. Blood began to bubble up in his throat, and he began chocking on it. He felt Batman's hands jostling him, pushing him on his side so he could expel the liquid blocking him from breathing. He coughed until the blood splattered the ground and he could breathe again.

"Internal bleeding." Batman added to his list. He wiped away the dribble of blood from Nightwing's chin and tugged off his cowl to reveal messy black hair and worried gray eyes. He reached down and pried off Nightwing's mask next, leaving them as regular ol' Bruce and Dick.

Bruce gently lifted Dick up for a moment, earning a soft moan in protest. He shifted his position so that his legs were stretched out and leaned Dick up against his chest. He kept one arm wrapped firmly around Dick's torso, firmly covering the gunshot wound. The other hand was carding it's attached fingers through Dick's ebony hair in comfort. To whom the comfort was directed to Dick didn't think much of. It could be either of them, or both. He knew that Bruce was feeling just as worn-out as he was.

The two were cast into a long silence. It was fairly comfortable, and it gave Dick time to calm himself down. He focused on staying awake despite the nagging darkness clawing at him. He couldn't let himself fall unconscious; couldn't do that to Bruce.

His eyes had become adjusted to the dim lighting, so he trained his vision on the outline of Bruce's combat boots. He memorized the grooves in them, every little detail. He recited the materials that they were made out of, then moved on to his own boots.

By then, Dick had noticed that Bruce was being more silent than usual. Normally Bruce as Batman was a pretty silent and mysterious person, but Dick knew him well enough to sense the tension in the air. There was different types of silence, and this was one that Dick knew the least about. It was as if Bruce was....hesitant about something.

It threw Dick completely off. Why would Bruce be hesitant? These past events shouldn't make the infamous holder of the cowl uncertain.

"Bruce?" Dick rasped, his chest rattling achingly with the vibrations of the name. He could feel blood and bile rising up in his throat again, but he swallowed it back down with a little bit of difficulty. He craned his head to look up at Bruce in confusion, his neck aching with the awkward position.

Bruce glanced down at him with a frown. Dick knew that look. That was his patented _I have an idea but you're not going to like it_ look that he'd often seen before. Which was never a good sign, most of the time.

Dick felt Bruce shift underneath him, the following sound of a latch clicking open deafening in the silence of the room. He watched in slight curiosity as Bruce pulled a small cylindrical piece of metal from his belt.

It was a Boom Tube container. Bruce had a friggin _Boom Tube_ on him. Dick was genuinely surprised.

Usually, Bruce would want that kind of technology either destroyed or locked up somewhere completely safe. He certainly wouldn't carry it on his persona; but apparently he did.

Knowing Bruce, it was probably one with weak power. Enough to get someone to where they want to, but not enough to get them back or to send another person. He didn't want someone accidentally getting a hold of it and wreaking havoc whenever or wherever they wanted. It would cause a lot of problems if in the wrong hands, but would come in handy as a backup plan for a friendly.

And then it clicked.

He knew why Bruce had it on him. It was a last resort; a sort of final chance for when he had no other choice. For that rare time he might actually admit defeat. "No." Dick shook his head, his body involuntarily shaking against Bruce's. He couldn't tell if it was from the feeling of fear swelling up in his stomach or if it was the constant pulse of pain ricocheting through his body that he'd been trying to ignore.

It could be a little bit of both, he guessed.

"It's the only way, Dick." Bruce said quietly. And Dick knew that if Bruce was practically admitting defeat, then it probably was the only way. But he didn't want it to go down like this. " _No_. I refuse to leave you here alone."

Dick felt Bruce heave a deep sigh against the back of his head. "Dick...." Bruce was stoic as ever, but Dick could feel the emotions conveyed in it. Bruce was scared. Terrified. Pleading for Dick to just take it and get out. To go somewhere where people could help him. To get away from this hell-hole of a place.

Dick stared at the cylinder in Bruce's black-gloved hand. He didn't want to take it. He didn't want to leave Bruce here alone, but he knew Bruce could probably defend himself better if he didn't have Dick dragging him down.

Dick knew that if he used the Boom Tube, he'd be stranded with possibly no way to get back home, not knowing wether he was in a different time or an entirely different universe. The thought of never being able to see his family and friends again made his already dizzy head spin faster.

Dick was broken out of his conflict by the sound of leather clicking on concrete. There were men coming this way, at least nine by the sound of it. His stomach did a couple of flips in nervousness. "Bruce." He whispered in panic.

The sudden feeling of chilling metal against his warm palm caused his attention to snap downwards. Bruce had slipped the Boom Tube into his hand. His grip tightened on the object, his other hand coming up to grasp the gloved fingers of Bruce's suit. " _Bruce_." This time Dick chocked on the name, blinking back tears as they sprung to his eyes.

Bruce squeezed his hand in reassurance and gently smoothed Dick's mask back to his face. He slipped out from underneath Dick and gently leaned him against the wall. He had pulled his Batman cowl back up over his face, glancing at Dick before slipping his hand away. "Go, Nightwing." He began slinking his way through the dim light towards the source of the noise.

Dick, now Nightwing, watched him, choking back a soft sob that threatened to escape his lips. He was scared. He was scared that he'd never be able to get back once he activated the Boom Tube. He was scared that this was going to be the last time he'll ever see Batman. He hadn't been this terrified in years. It made him a bit confused why he was letting such a child-like fear get to him.

As the footsteps got closer, Batman shot him a look that meant _leave now, Dick_. Nightwing clenched his eyes shut. He took a couple of deep breaths, shaky and painful from his broken ribs, and pushed the button on the Boom Tube. He couldn't bear to open his eyes again. He didn't want to see Batman watching him leave; didn't want to read the remorse he knew was on his face behind the thick cowl.

The world behind his eyelids exploded into a cascade of bright colors. The ground shifted and warped beneath him, and vertigo kicked in. Nightwing tried to concentrate on something, anything to get his mind off of the nausea and panic. He thought of times when he was younger, when he first met the Team. He thought of Jason, of Tim, Barbara, of everyone. He thought of every single time he'd spent with Bruce at the manor. He thought of Alfred's amazing cooking and of his very first patrol as Robin.

And suddenly there was ground beneath him again, smacking him straight in the face. He gasped as the breath was knocked out of him. His injured ribs screaming in protest. He coughed harshly, a metallic-tasting liquid flecking his lips, each heave for breath gurgling deep in his chest. The slash on his leg lit up with burning agony where it was jostled against the ground; the gunshot wound in his stomach pulling painfully in a similar manner. His injured wrist was crushed under his body weight, sending sparks up his arm.

Nightwing couldn't help the soft, breathless cry that escaped his lips, blood bubbling up his throat. His whole body hurt a hell of a lot more than it did before. He placed his good hand on the ground next to him, trying to push himself up, but his body weighed too much for his weakened state to carry. He crashed back to the ground from exhaustion, blood slipping out of his mouth.

Faint voices were whispering from somewhere above him. They sounded distorted, but he could make out the concern and caution. He cracked his weary eyes open a bit to meet a pair of black silicone combat boots. The same ones that Bruce wore in costume. The same ones that he'd been studying not even five minutes ago.

Nightwing thought he saw more pairs of familiar-looking shoes, but the blackness was quickly creeping into his vision. He had no choice but to succumb to the dark, the waves of pain slowly disappearing as he sunk into the calm abyss.

•••••••••••••••

Nightwing's senses came back to him slowly.

First came feeling. He could tell he was lying on his back with something soft but scratchy underneath him, and a thin sheet of cotton was covering his body. He'd been stripped of his uniform, boots and belt and all. All but the mask, thankfully.

There were bandages in its place, wrapped around his entire torso, right wrist, and left leg. A pair of shorts replaced bottom half of his uniform, but what little of his chest wasn't remained open to the chilly air. The familiar pinch of an IV made him shift his arm in discomfort.

Surprisingly, he felt numb. There was no pain. Just numbness. He was probably sedated with morphine.

Next came his hearing. His ears picked up the sound of steady mechanical beeping and the faint drip of the IV. Other than that, he could hear nothing else. He was alone in the room.

Then came his smell and taste. His mouth was dry and tasted of dried mucus that had dripped down his throat. He scrunched his nose in distaste and licked his chapped lips. The air smelled of strong antiseptic, and a bit musty if he had to be honest.

It smelled like a cave.

It smelled like _the_ Cave.

Finally returned his sight. He slowly peeled his eyes open, squinting at the harsh fluorescent lights glaring down at him from above. Once he got used to the overhead lights, he nearly had a heart attack.

He _was_ in the Cave. He was laying down in the medical wing, lying down on one of the beds.

But this wasn't _his_ Cave. The Cave he knew was a pile of rubble.

He sat up quickly, ripping all of the monitors and IV off of him. He was a bit disoriented at first; his head was spinning like mad. Just as he was about to hop down from the bed and make his leave, two people entered the room.

It was Black Canary and Flash. The two took sight of him and launched forwards and pinned him back to the bed. "Woah, take it easy there! You can't go anywhere in your condition." Flash exclaimed.

Nightwing put up little resistance. He was too sedated and exhausted to fight back. He let Black Canary hook him back up as he studied them both.

They were considerably younger than the Flash and Black Canary in his world. At least by six years, but he could still tell the difference. Small wrinkles that weren't present now; slight costume changes that wouldn't happen for another couple years.

So he was in the past. Sometime six years ago, to be exact.

"What time is it?" Nightwing asked and his voice cracked badly, showing just how scratchy his throat was.

The Flash got the hint and zoomed away. He returned a moment later with a glass of water, passing it over to Nightwing. "Nine past three in the afternoon, why?"

Nightwing frowned as he took a sip of his drink. "I mean the date."

"November 14th."

"Year?"

The Flash shared a confused look with Black Canary. "2010."

Nightwing stared at the now half-empty glass in his hands. His mind went completely blank. "I'm in...the past?" He muttered out loud. His voice echoed around the white room and back to his ears, sounding confused and small.


	2. Familiarity

After absorbing the news, Nightwing had gone into a state of shock. His face was blank and emotionless, his unblinking eyes set in a faraway gaze behind his domino mask. His dry lips had sealed shut in a thin line.

Physically, he was unresponsive.

But mentally, he was aware of _everything_. He was aware that Black Canary and Flash had left three hours, twenty-three minutes, and seven seconds ago. He was aware that several others had came and gone; Black Canary had returned once to check on him, Superman had briefly entered with Wonder Woman at his side an hour and ten minutes later, Martian Manhunter was the latest to come and try to unsuccessfully enter his mind and break him out of his reverie.

Physically, he could see the ceiling. The plain, white ceiling of that clean-smelling hospital room. He could vaguely see the worried faces that crossed his vision.

But, deep down in the guarded walls of his mind, all he could imagine was his family. His Bat family. His Team family. His League family. His circus family. _Everyone_. His heart ached with longing, but he felt strangely numb otherwise. He didn't want to believe that he'd never see them again. He _refused_ to admit defeat.

Then he heard the door slide open quietly. He heard the faint click of silicone boots on linoleum tile, the swish of a cape fluttering with movement. He registered a flash of solid black to his right and felt the bed dip as that someone sat on the edge of the bed next to him.

Comfortable silence washed over the room for a couple of minutes before the visitor finally spoke. "I know you can hear me, Richard." The familiar voice was low and gruff as usual, but had a softer tone only reserved for him.

Nightwing blinked out of his catatonic state slowly but didn't let his face show it. He tilted his head to the side to find a cowl-less Bruce. But he had to remind himself that this wasn't _his_ Bruce. This Bruce was younger and.... _different_.

"You know." It wasn't a question. It was a statement. Bruce knew it was him behind that mask, without a single doubt.

Bruce reached out and carded his fingers through Nightwing's hair. Nightwing closed his eyes, relishing in the sweet touch. It wasn't often that Bruce became so affectionate.

"Yes." Bruce responded. "No one else knows. I'm sure they suspect."

Nightwing nodded wordlessly. Bruce took this as his cue to continue. "You showed up in the Watchtower hangar. The medical supplies there were running low, so we had to bring you to Mount Justice for treatment. Black Canary splinted your wrist and wrapped your ribs. I had to call Doctor Leslie for the rest. She removed the bullet from your abdomen, stitched the wound on your calf, and gave you a blood transfusion to replace the blood you lost. I assume Leslie knows, but she never said anything. She had to return to Gotham yesterday after assuring you were stabilized. You've been out for three days."

Nightwing could tell that Bruce was leaving a lot out of his shortened story, but he didn't press. Instead, he opted for a friendlier approach. "How did you know it was me in the first place?"

"I didn't at first. You've grown a lot. But there were subtle similarities in your appearance that gave me a hunch. I snagged a DNA sample from you while you were out to confirm my suspicions." Bruce replied truly and honestly, at least one of leather gloves still touching him in a sort of comfort.

"But what concerned me the most was that your appearance wasn't the only thing that has changed. Your blood is different, too. It's mixed. Mixed with a small percentage of _my_ DNA." Nightwing opened his eyes as Bruce suddenly withdrew his hand. Bruce had his gaze fixed intently on Nightwing, demanding answers.

Nightwing sighed and shifted so that he was sitting up more. That wasn't necessarily new information to him. His own Bruce had talked to him about it in a similar manner before.

He locked his eyes onto Bruce's. "You know the dangers of the life we live, Bruce. There are sometimes consequences of our actions. We all get injured sometimes; some more than others. It's a downside of being a human superhero. I've had to get many blood transfusions before, and you're the only Leaguer who shares my blood type."

It was true. Both of them were the only ones in the hero community that had a blood type of O-positive. Well, now Damian too, but he was too young to be giving blood. Or receiving it, for that matter.

Bruce seemed upset at this new knowledge. The corners of his mouth twitched down in displeasure, and creases began to form on his forehead. Nightwing scoffed at his reaction. "It's not _that_ bad, Bruce."

Bad mistake. That made Bruce even more displeased. "If you're really getting injured so often, I think it is."

Nightwing threw an arm over his face with a groan. "Bruce." He whined. " _Please_ don't start this whole spiel again. I hear it at least once every other month; I don't need to hear it again."

Bruce stayed silent for a moment before thankfully changing the subject. "How old are you?"

"20. It was October 20th, 2017 in my time before I came here."

"Why _did_ you come here?"

Silence. Nightwing wasn't sure how to answer.

"I didn't plan on it." He answered quietly. "It just happened. You and I went on a mission. It didn't go so well." He set a slight edge to his tone so that Bruce could pick up on the fact that he didn't want to explain it any further.

Instead, another moment of silence stilled the room. Nightwing could tell Bruce was watching him, studying. "You're not Robin anymore." He stated at last.

Nightwing shook his head. "No. I outgrew the title, passed it on. The name's Nightwing now."

"Nightwing? Please don't tell me...."

"It's after the Candorian legend Uncle Clark used to tell me. Y'know, the one you love _oh-so-much_." Nightwing grinned evilly.

Bruce _hated_ that story.

Clark had often appeared at the manor unexpected and uninvited to visit his _favorite little nephew_. He'd stay until it was late at night and would tell the tale of Flamebird and Nightwing as a bedtime story. His Bruce had been so angered when he picked that moniker that he'd nearly beat the crap out of Clark and gave the silent treatment to the newly named Nightwing for a whole month.

Bruce scowled, brow furrowing in annoyance. "I heard enough of that story when you were younger. Now I think you're just doing it to irk me."

Nightwing laughed lightly. "Hey, I like the name!" He protested.

Bruce sighed and continued on with the conversation. "You took on a new identity and passed it on. Who is the new Robin?"

Nightwing took a deep breath, as if he was about to start a huge rant. "No names, but there were actually two after me. The first one was a orphan you found off the streets. The story of how you found him is _hilarious_ , but I'm not going to spoil all the fun for you. You took him in, trained him, and then gave him the title. I wasn't too happy with it at first because Robin was _mine_ , even if I did....give it up. But I gave him a chance. He became like a little brother to me. He....well....the Joker got ahold of him one day. Neither of us made it in time." He was silent for a moment, his face somber. Then he continued.

"And only a few weeks later, I visited home to find a new Robin. I was pretty angry, more about the fact that you let him become Robin so quickly after my little brother's death, and with so little training at that. But although he was badly undertrained, he could hack like you wouldn't believe. He's about two times faster than I am. I decided to take him under my wing; to give him an extra push. There's also a Batgirl, a former Batgirl, a to-be Batgirl, and another Robin waiting in line, too. We're quite the family."

Bruce raised an eyebrow. He didn't comment on the fact that he'd taken in so many children. "You said _visited_. You don't live at the manor anymore?"

"Nope. I've got my own apartment, and my own city to take care of. Blüdhaven's even worse than Gotham when it comes to street crime and drug dealing. There may not be many high-rate villains, but there's plenty of thugs to take care of."

"Blüdhaven?"

"Yep. I left Gotham and went solo. I chose Blüdhaven only to prove myself to you, honestly."

"I'd prefer you would have proved yourself somewhere else." Bruce scowled again. It was such a familiar scene that it made his heart ache.

"Funny you should say that....." Nightwing chuckled to himself, but it sounded hollow. He swallowed back a lump in his throat.

Bruce leaned forward, putting his hand on Nightwing's shoulder. "We'll get you back to your own time." He assured him gently.

Nightwing nodded numbly and stared at the sheets in his lap. He felt his jaw suddenly unhinge in a large yawn. He felt his eyes begin to take on sudden weight and blinked to keep them open. He was just beginning to notice how fatigued he was feeling.

Bruce must've noticed. His lips quirked up in a small smile and he brushed his fingers through Nightwing's black hair once more. He used his other hand to carefully push the injured vigilante back onto the bed. "Go back to sleep, Richard."

Nightwing obeyed, closing his eyes. He drifted off to the feeling of Bruce's soft touch and couldn't help the wave of homesickness that overcame him.

When was the last time _his_ Bruce had done this? It seemed like ages ago.

And maybe it had been.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kinda short, but it works :)


	3. Complexity

It wasn't until two days later that Nightwing was allowed out of the infirmary. Two whole days of counting ceiling tiles and whining about his boredom to any visitors. Which there wasn't too many.

Black Canary had come often to check his stitches and rewrap his wounds. Batman had visited frequently; surprisingly almost for an hour a day. Superman, Wonder Woman, and Flash had also made an appearance somewhere in those agonizingly long two days of strict bed rest. He'd assumed that Batman had told them his identity. They probably wouldn't be as friendly to any other kid that was spat out of a portal in the middle of the Watchtower hangar.

And once he was told by Black Canary that he could wander about, without putting too much strain on himself, he was gone.

He'd probably surprised Black Canary a bit by disappearing right in front of her face, but he didn't care. He always _hated_ being stuck in bed. As soon as he gets the okay, then he's out of there.

Nightwing found himself wandering around the Cave at first. He knew where everything was; he'd memorized every little detail, right down to the slightest nick in the stone walls. It wasn't like he could get lost. He'd spent the last six years practically _living_ here half of the time.

After walking through nearly all the bare hallways, exploring every room, he suddenly thought of something. Wouldn't the Team be here? If he remembered clearly, there wasn't many major missions this week. His teammates and his younger self would be lounging around the Cave until the next mission. Where were they right now? Why hasn't he run into at least _one_ of them yet?

Nightwing tried to think. Of course he didn't have to think long. The answer hit him straight in the face. Almost literally.

He found himself nose to nose with a surprised blonde archer. She quickly backpedaled, falling into a defensive stance. "Who are you?" She growled.

"Relax." Nightwing put his hands up in surrender. He tried to make himself appear less threatening by relaxing his muscles. "I'm just visiting."

"That didn't answer my question." Artemis snapped, her patience growing thin. She studied him up and down, noting the casual clothes he was wearing. He had on a pair of simple gray sweatpants with a plain white T-shirt, the edges of his bandages just barely peeking out behind the low-set collar. His arm was still wrapped up, too, and he had his ever-present mask still glued to his face. Her eyes drifted back to his face. "You're that guy the League brought in."

Nightwing dropped his arms back down to his sides. He nodded in confirmation. He froze slightly as his sensitive hearing picked up on footsteps.

"Artemis?" Someone called, then suddenly the whole Team was there. They stared at him in curiosity, some in distrust. "Who is this?" It was then clear the speaker was Kaldur.

"That's what I'm trying to figure out." Artemis shot another suspicious glance at Nightwing.

The rest of the Team instantly became tense. Superboy began boring a hole into Nightwing's domino mask; Nightwing was almost surprised he didn't spontaneously gain heat vision with the force of it. Kaldur eyed him warily, while Wally and Robin opted for mere suspicious looks. Zatanna and M'gann were standing back a ways with more curious gazes than anything. Artemis was still standing in front of him with her chin defiantly held up.

They immediately began making small motions between themselves. Sometimes a quick glance; sometimes a slight hand motion. It was almost as if they were trying to make a discreet dialogue. Nightwing, though, knew all too well; they were communicating via mind link.

Nightwing sighed in exasperation and cast his eyes upward for a moment. "Dear God, does it really look like I'm in any shape for a fight? I mean, I could beat all of you within two minutes flat even with my injuries, but whatever." He let the snark drip into his voice.

In reality, he _was_ hoping they'd decide he was a threat. He knows that Black Canary told him to take it easy, but he was itching to do something. Picking fights wasn't really his style, but at this point he'd be willing to do _anything_ just to get rid of his chronic itch to kick ass.

"No, which is why you shouldn't be deliberately asking for one." A voice sounded from behind him.

Nightwing allowed a flinch as he turned around. Batman loomed over him, his arms crossed and a stern look on his face. His frown deepened at Nightwing's guilty smile. _Busted_.

Nightwing let out a nervous laugh. "Hey, B! Didn't see you there!"

Batman shot him a hard glare at the nickname before turning to the Team. "This is Nightwing. He is a temporary guest, and should be treated with _respect_."

The Team nodded and relaxed. Kaldur stepped forward and offered an apology to Nightwing, although it sounded strained. He still didn't trust Nightwing; that much was obvious. Nightwing accepted the apology with a bright smile. He was about to strike up a friendly conversation when Batman cleared his throat.

He turned back to the Dark Knight to find him holding a pile of familiar clothes. Nightwing's eyes lit up behind the mask. "My suit!" He exclaimed happily. He snatched it from Batman's leather gloves, and did a rundown to make sure everything was there.

"I had to take it to get repaired." Batman explained. He was aware of the Team listening but didn't appear to care. Or perhaps he _wanted_ them to hear. "We had to cut it off of you to check your injuries. Nobody could find the zipper."

Nightwing flipped the suit around in his hands. Sure enough, there was a line of stitching that would be nearly invisible to anyone who didn't have a trained eye. There was only one person Nightwing knew could do such amazing stitching.

"Agent A?" Nightwing asked. He watched out of the corner of his eye as Robin's lenses narrowed at him. That probably made him a little more suspicious to the two people on the Team who actually knew who Agent A was; which happened to be only his younger self and Wally.

Batman nodded and continued on with the conversation. "You'll be staying here. I assume you've already found the guest rooms?"

Nightwing smirked, nodded in confirmation. "How much can I say about my....situation? I'm sure the Team's dying to start hounding me with questions."

"Your identity remains League-level priority. Any information threatening to the time stream is also classified." Basically Batman's way of giving him the go-ahead.

Nightwing grinned. "So no crashing the mode. Got it." He felt a little bit homesick. That would be something Bart would say. What was _his_ team doing right now? How well were they doing in his year-long absence?

Batman raised an eyebrow at his choice of words but easily dismissed it. He melted back into the shadows and exited the hallway, leaving just Nightwing and the Team.

"Your _situation_? _Time stream_? What are you, from the _future_?" Wally asked immediately after the Dark Knight disappeared. It was meant to be sarcasm, Nightwing could tell.

Nightwing's infectious grin got wider. Time to make things interesting. "So what if I am?"

The Team looked at him in shock. "You can't be serious." Artemis looked at him with an extremely disbelieving look.

"Serious as a Slytherin, Artie." Nightwing rolled his eyes at his own joke and started to head down the hallway. He couldn't help but cackle at the dumbfounded expressions on the Team's faces; particularly his best friend's slack-jawed stature.

As he rounded the corner, he sent one last glance back. "Close your mouth, Wally; you'll catch flies."

|||••••••••••••••••••••|||

Nightwing entered the living room about seven minutes after disappearing. He'd taken a quick shower and redressed into his costume. His wounds had to be redressed carefully. He'd also made sure to reapply the glue to his mask, since it was beginning to wear off.

When he entered, he made sure to be quiet. The whole Team was there; all doing their own thing. M'gann was in the kitchen baking cookies while Zatanna was sitting on a nearby stool, the two quietly talking to each other; Kaldur was silently reading a book; Wally was splayed out on the couch, flipping through the channels on the TV; Artemis was leaning over the back of the couch while inconspicuously fiddling with one of her arrows and glaring down at Wally; and Superboy was merely staring blank-faced at the TV.

Nightwing looked up to find Robin eyeing him from the rafters. He put a finger to his lips and snuck forwards into the room. He made sure his footsteps were silenced and controlled his breathing.

Nobody even spared a him look but Robin, who was carefully tracking his every move. That meant none of the Team had noticed he was in the room.

Nightwing stopped right behind Artemis, standing there with a small smirk on his lips. "What're you watching?" He asked.

Artemis and Wally jumped in surprise, the latter nearly falling off the couch. Superboy's head snapped to him with a growl. The others just merely looked over in mild surprise.

"What-where-when the hell did you come in here?" Artemis stuttered, clearly flustered that Nightwing had just appeared behind her.

Nightwing's grin became more apparent. "I've been in the room for about a minute."

Artemis opened her mouth to reply, but was cut off suddenly. She gave a squawk of protest as she was pushed backwards by a blur dressed in blue plaid civvies.

Nightwing raised an eyebrow as he got a face full of speedster. Wally had his eyes narrowed down at him, leaning in close. "How did you know my name earlier?"

"Simple. I know all of you in the future, therefore I know all of your identities."

" _All_ of ours?" He questioned, crossing his arms.

Nightwing nodded. "Everyone on this Team, present, past, and future. Even all the Justice League."

"Even Batman?"

"What part of _everyone_ do you not get?"

"What's your real name?"

"Classified."

"What time are you from?"

"Classified."

"How old are you?" The whole Team was now looking on, glancing back and forth between the two as they spoke.

"20."

"When were you born?"

Nightwing smirked. "Clever trick, but it's not going to work."

"How'd you get here?"

"Freak accident."

"Why are you-" Artemis cut him off by slapping her hand over his mouth. "Shut up, Baywatch. You're giving us all a headache." She hissed venomously.

Nightwing couldn't help the laugh that escaped his lips. He ignored the Team's looks and shook his head. It was so obvious then and it was even _more_ obvious now; these two had some serious unresolved sexual tension.

"What's so funny?" M'gann inquired innocently. Her wide eyes gazed up at him with open curiosity and confusion.

"You'll understand in a few years." Nightwing vaguely explained. He tilted his head slightly to meet Robin's intense gaze.

The whole time, his younger self hadn't spoke. He'd been staring at Nightwing intently, as if trying to decipher him. He also had a look on his face that Nightwing knew all too well. He'd used it a lot before. Robin's eyebrows were drawn slightly closer than normal, his lips subtly pursed. "If you have a question, ask it." Nightwing told him.

The Team turned their heads to Robin. Having been suddenly put under the spotlight, he became slightly apprehensive, but stood straighter to cover it up. "How do you know Batman's identity?"

Nightwing's lips twitched down into a frown. That was the million dollar question, wasn't it? Of course, Robin knew that Batman had to have a high level of trust to let someone in on his secret. He couldn't let any of them in on too much, or he'd risk revealing his identity. Robin was just intensely curious as to who he was and why Batman would have so much faith in him.

"In the future, Batman is, or was, my mentor. I was one of the Robins."

The Team stared at him in varying states of shock. "Robin _s_?" Wally asked the thing on all their minds. "As in, _plural_?"

Nightwing smirked. "And don't forget about the different Batgirls. Let's just say that Batman has a soft spot for orphans. And children that got disowned by their own parents. _And_ runaways."

" _Batgirls_? How many protégés does he _have_?"

"Only two at a time. There's always a Robin and a Batgirl. After they grow older, they go solo, create a name for themselves. In total, and including me, I believe Batman's had...five protégés, and two in training?"

Artemis suddenly butt in. "Whoa, wait a minute. _Five_ protégés? Two in _training_?"

"Yep. We're quite the family."

"Wow, Rob." Wally turned to his best friend. "Remind me never to visit your house ever again. A place with a bunch of mini-Bats running around _definitely_ isn't a place I want to be. They'd probably, I dunno, try to murder me."

Nightwing laughed. "No-kill rule in the Batfamily household. Although, Jay _did_ try and drive a knife through your neck the one day. Completely non-lethal shot, but it probably would've done some pretty bad damage, had Agent A not been there." He smirked in satisfaction when Wally let out a terrified squeak.

Robin spoke up again to cover his best friend from any further embarrassment. "If there were, or will be, as many Robins as you say there are, then which one were you?"

"Can't tell. It could mess up the time stream and potentially give away my identity."

"What _can_ you tell us about yourself?"

"I was a Robin, that much is known, but something happened where I couldn't keep the title. I was mad at first. I left as soon as I graduated high school, and I went straight to Blüdhaven. At first, I was trying to decide what I should do. Saving people was in my veins; I couldn't just quit being a hero. Plus, Blüdhaven needed a hero. So I decided to restart as new vigilante. I made my way as Nightwing, protector of Blüdhaven."

"Isn't Nightwing a known Kryptonian legend?"

"Yep. I asked Superman if it was okay to use the name before I began my career. He told me that he'd be honored."

The Team exchanged glances. For a high-rank League member like Superman to tell someone that he would be honored meant that he had serious respect for that person.

Nightwing watched the shared looks with a small smirk. He'd made sure to be extra careful, to play his cards right. The last thing he wanted to do was make an enemy of the Team.

_I think I just won them over....._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaannnd the third chapter is up! It took me a while because I've been busy, but it's finally finished! The next chapter may be late, too. I'm going on vacation (without wifi, I might add) so I won't be able to work in it much.
> 
> You also might notice that I've changed some minor details. It's not that much of a difference, just that this takes place one year after Endgame, instead of being only three months.


	4. Tenacity

The Team had grown accustomed to seeing Nightwing around. He'd slink around the Cave quietly, sometimes striking up a friendly conversation, but mostly just adding one more body to the silence of the room. Sometimes he would completely disappear for hours, and the Team was left to wonder if maybe he'd found a way to escape via the Zetas.

Other times, he'd just observe the Team quietly. Whether they were lounging around or training, he'd just watch silently and make very little comments. His vow of silence was slightly unnerving, to say the least.

It had been precisely five days since they'd initially met him. He'd healed pretty well in that duration; if he were home, he'd already be back on patrol by now. His wrist had mended, albeit being a bit sore; the stitches on his calf had been removed, the fresh scar giving him a temporary limp; and his gunshot wound had finally closed up by itself.

Nightwing, though, had been complaining secretly the whole time. Batman still visited, although less frequently, and Black Canary and Red Tornado were always a familiar face. He always expressed his complaint to them in different forms that he knew they'd pick up on, and each of them had varying responses. But they all had one thing in common; they all refused to let him train or leave the Cave. None of them allowed Nightwing to " _overexert_ " himself.

If you asked Nightwing himself, he'd say that it was a load of bull. He was healed enough to do at least _some_ physical activity other than walk around. And he was absolutely aching to do _something_ to satisfy his nagging itch.  
  
The opportunity fortunately presented itself to him two days later. The Team was lounging around the living room, discussing the fact that they hadn't had a mission in a while. They, too, were eager for their next mission.

Nightwing just listened silently from his spot on one of the kitchen stools. He absentmindedly fiddled with the belt around his waist, a nervous habit he'd became accustomed to since he'd first donned his new suit. Meanwhile, the Team was having a full-on complaint festival.

As if by pure coincidence and irony, a blue holographic screen popped up in the middle of the room, effectively silencing everyone. Batman's cowled face was lit up on the screen. "Team, report to the briefing room for a mission assignment."

The briefing room and the debriefing room were one and the same, even though the name changed depending on whether it was post or pre mission. It was kind of silly. Why didn't they just call it a mission room or something like that? Okay, maybe he was just rambling now...

Nightwing looked away boredly, a small sigh about to escape his lips. "And you too, Nightwing." His whole depressed demeanor changed; his newfound excitement made him look like a kid that woke up to snow on Christmas Day. He was the first one to get on his feet and start heading towards the room.

The Team plus Nightwing found themselves in front of Batman and Black Canary in a matter of seconds. The two had serious expressions on their face, their eyes focused solely on the younger heroes in front of them. Between them was a large holographic screen, the blue casting eerie shadows on their faces.

Batman stepped forward first. He turned so he could face the screen but still see the Team and pointed a small remote at it. A picture of a tattered building appeared in the screen. It looked like it could be an old business building, but there were no big signs or a logo advertising such.

"This is the new suspected Cadmus building. Ever since the incident a couple of months ago, they've had to move location and keep quiet. But lately, strange energy signals have been appearing on our radar from somewhere inside there, much light the signature Nightwing gave off when he first came here."

All eyes pivoted to the mentioned vigilante for a split second.

"Do you think they are trying to find a way to time travel?" Kaldur asked, directing his attention back to the Bat.

"It wouldn't be that much of a surprise, but yet I feel like there's more to it. Cadmus is too clever to just come up with such a complicated experiment without a set reason." Batman locked eyes with Nightwing. "Has there been any other time travel incidents in the past that might have sparked their interest?"

"Not that I know of. We have a time traveller in our time, but it's been well over a year and a half, and his stop was direct. There's also a time lord that likes to mess around, but he's completely harmless. Last thing I knew, he was doing his time in Arkham for almost causing a major time paradox."

Batman's eyebrows furrowed in thought. This, however, went unnoticed by everyone but the two other Bats in the room. Black Canary decided to finally step in. "Team, your job is to scope out the building. _Inconspicuously_. Which means, _don't get caught_. Only engage if it is an absolute emergency. Batman and I have also come to a decision that Nightwing will be leader for this mission."

The Team shared glances of bewilderment between themselves, surprised gasps escaping some of their lips.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Nightwing said uncertainly. "I thought I wasn't supposed to get involved in any missions?"

Batman just stared at him, giving a slight twitch of his lips, accompanied by a slow flex of his wrist. In response, Nightwing tilted his head slightly to the side. The two suddenly got lost in a silent conversation of nearly non-existent expressions while most of the Team looked on in confusion. Wally rolled his eyes and muttered something about "secret Bat-language."

Finally, it was Batman who spoke up first. "Team, you are dismissed. Go get ready. You leave in five." And then he was gone.

Black Canary stayed behind, fixing Nightwing with a meaningful gaze. "Take it easy, alright?" Her tone was soft but stern. Nightwing nodded in response as she brushed past him on her way out the door.

The Team filed out one by one. Wally immediately fell into step next to Nightwing, the others just two paces ahead. "How come you get to lead?" The speedster asked almost whiningly.

"Because I know everything that's going to happen on this mission. I can make sure everything goes according to plan. And I believe Bats also wants to test my skills." Nightwing replied matter-of factly.

"How do you know about this mission?" Wally asked suspiciously, his emerald eyes narrowing and his freckled nose scrunched up in distrust.

Nightwing shrugged nonchalantly. "I've read the reports before." Wally seemed somewhat satisfied with the answer and sped on ahead of him.

It was a half-truth. He had read the reports, but he also _wrote_ them. He'd remembered going on this mission, then he'd written an extremely detailed report explaining the mission in full. There wasn't really that much information about it. He was, however, thrown for a loop with the new time travel tidbit.

But if he was leading the mission now, would that change the course of the future? What else would that change?

Nightwing bit his lip to keep from voicing his explicit self-reply out loud. What if just his presence was ruining the stability of the time frame? A pang of worry suddenly hit him.

One sympathetic look from M'gann later, and he'd instantly known that he'd accidentally let his mental walls slip down enough so that she could sense his change in emotion. He flashed her a small smile to reassure her that he was okay, and kept walking towards the Bioship in silence while the other chatted contently.

But he couldn't help the numb feeling that rooted itself deep in his bones. If he screwed this up, he could potentially shatter the whole timeline. The last thing he'd want to do is create a paradox. They were not fun to deal with.

It wasn't like this was a major mission, anyways....

.... _Right_?

|||••••••••••••••••••••|||

  
The Team plus Nightwing had reached the new Cadmus hideout within minutes. It was a tri-floor building on the outskirts of the city, small pieces of the gray-and-brown outside wall starting to crumble. The windows were cloudy and unclear, some of them cracked.

There was, without a doubt, many floors underneath the building that housed the actual hideout. It was just the typical Cadmus style.

The building was surrounded by a tall, eight-foot chain link fence, with menacing metal spikes lining the top. The only gated entrance was guarded by four strong men, each with their own fully-automatic gun. Six other guards frequently patrolled around the building, just as armed as the other guards.

"Soooo....." Wally started as they scoped the area from the treeline. "How are we gonna get in there?"

Kaldur turned to look at Nightwing. "Your call, my friend."

Nightwing stared ahead, analyzing, trying to remember. "Robin, I need you to hack into the Cadmus database. There should be a secret underground tunnel somewhere on the eastern side. We just need the exact location and a layout of the tunnel."

Robbin nodded and complied. He brought up his holocomputer, furiously typing away at the keyboard. "I'm in." He stated. Then he took a second to skim through the lines on his screen. "Looks like you were right. The entrance is marked by a rock with a giant red C, just to the west of us by about 120 yards, it looks like. The pattern for the tunnels is-"

"-right, left, second left, and middle tunnel." Nightwing cut him off with a smirk. "I remember."

He shot a playful grin at Artemis when he overheard her hide her snide comment of "smartass" behind a fake cough. Then he took off to the left. He paced himself carefully, then dove off further into the woods.

The Team followed him slowly, clearly confused. When they found him again, he was perched atop a boulder with a faded C scratched into it. "You were right about the 120 yards." He addressed Robin. "But it was also an additional 20 from the treeline."

With that, he promptly slid silently off the rock and sauntered over to a tree three steps behind the rock. He pulled something out of his belt, placed it on the tree, then took a couple steps back.

The small circular device he'd placed began beeping rapidly, then exploded into a brilliant display of flames. Most of the Team had shielded their face upon detonation.

After the flames died down, the tree was still standing, but there was a large hole hollowing it out. Everyone took a couple steps forward, genuinely curious. The hole extended down, and it was now clear that the tree was made of some sort of metal on the inside.

Nightwing smirked and looked at the Team. "Shall we?" He asked snarkily before disappearing down the hole.

Wally was the first to go after him with an exclamation of " _sweet_!"

Then the rest of the Team followed, one by one squeezing down the hole to drop down into a tunnel.

Nightwing led them down the tunnels without any hesitation. He took turns with confidence, and each step had a sort of cocky bounce to it.

Wally couldn't help but notice this. He snorted upon his realization and leaned over to Robin to voice it. "Is it just me?" He whispered, his eyes still tracking the vigilante of the future. "Or does this Nightwing character seem like a really flamboyant _dick_?"

|||••••••••••••••••••••|||

The tunnel led them to a door in the basement of the building. Well, one of the basements, anyways. Once they were all through the doorway and crouched in the pristine white hallway, Robin took another glance at the layout of the Cadmus building. He immediately rose an eyebrow. "This building has multiple floors underneath it. Not as much as the old headquarters, but still a lot."

"How many are there?" Wally asked out of curiosity.

"Twenty-one."

Nightwing sniggered. When the others gave him strange looks, he just shook his head. "Reminded me of a joke from my time."

"Uh, okaaaaay....anyways, what floor are we on now?"

"Sub-level two. If I'm correct, the floor we need to investigate is sub-level fifteen. That's where the suspected foul play is. Now we just need to sneak into an elevator or-"

"Someone's coming." Superboy cut him off, eyes narrowing and head titling to the left.

"Scatter and hide! Meet back up after they're gone!" Nightwing ordered before disappearing into the shadows. The others followed suit and took cover.

Two men walked by slowly, dressed in pristine white lab coats. One was a tall, skinny man with curly brown hair and glasses on the bridge of his nose. The other was a shorter, older man.

"Sir." The younger one said, adjusting his glasses with one hand and gripping the clipboard he held in his other hand more tightly. "The project was a failure. Again."

"So perform it again." The older scientist's voice was grisly and intimidating, as if he used to be a criminal before this. "The subject can withstand the experiments, correct? Repeat it as many times as you need to."

"But, sir, the lingering traces of time travel are starting to fade.... If we mess with him any further, we may risk losing the residue."

The older scientist stopped abruptly. He fixed the other man with a hard glare, however, his face was impassive. "Did I make myself _unclear_ , Gregory? _Repeat the experiment_."

"Yes, sir. Right away, sir." The curly-haired man nodded hurriedly and turned, doubling back to where he came from. The older man watched him leave before making his own exit in the opposite direction.

Nightwing waited three more seconds after they left before hopping from his perch in the rafters. This was so not whelming, not whelming at all. He didn't remember this happening. Maybe they were just proceeding with the mission a bit too quickly?

The others began emerging from their hiding places. They shuffled in ackward silence in the wake of the two scientists. "Well, they're definitely messing with time travel." Wally piped up, being the only one with enough courage to break the ice.

"Indeed." Kaldur agreed. "But who is this subject they are talking about?"

Wally nudged Nightwing in question. "Friend of yours?"

"I'm not sure...." The dark-haired vigilante frowned in thought. "I haven't heard of anyone time traveling recently, other than me."

"He could've been talking about a subject from a different experiment." M'gann pitched in with a suggestion.

"Highly unlikely, beautiful. Medical talk is confusing, but it doesn't take a genius to figure out that they were talking about one sole experiment."

Artemis cracked her knuckles readily. "Why don't we follow this Gregory character and find out, then?" She bounced from foot to foot in agitation.

Nightwing nodded. He was as curious as they were. And, after all, this was partially why they'd came here. "Follow my lead." He promptly took off after the curly-haired scientist named Gregory, not bothering to see if the others were following. Or, rather, he didn't need to glance back. He could hear their footsteps as clear as day to his trained ears.

Not even two short hallways later, Nightwing had caught up to Gregory. The young man was just about to go through the doors of the elevator. Nightwing had to think fast; the elevator operated solely by key, so this was possible their only chance. He evaluated the situation for a split second before acting.

The black-clad vigilante launched himself from the shadows and directly at the now shocked man. He slammed the man against the wall of the elevator, covering his mouth as he screamed in terror. "If you know what's best for you, you'll stay quiet." He growled in an almost Batman-like way.

The scientist nodded frantically, his eyes wide with fear. Nightwing took his hand off of the guy's mouth. "Where is the experiment you were talking about? What floor?"

"I-It's on the f-fifteenth floor. D-door number nine o-oh five."

"Is there anyone currently on the floor?" Nightwing narrowed his eyes, knowing the man could feel his hard glare through the mask.

"N-no. E-everyone's on l-lunch b-break."

Nightwing suddenly straightened up, the dark aura that had once ebbed from his skin lightening. "Thank you!" He gave the man a bright, cheery smile. His tone was sickeningly sweet and innocent, almost too sweet.

Then, as the man's eyebrows began furrowing in confusion at the complete 180, Nightwing reached forward with surprising speed and slammed his head against the wall, successfully knocking him out. He let the scientist fall to the ground and turned around.

The Team approached him with varying looks. There was a range of awe, suspicion, horror, fear. Wally's expression in particular was a mix of all of them. "Whoa, dude. That was freaking _terrifying_."

Nightwing grinned and held up a key that he snatched from the scientist sometime throughout the whole ordeal. "Let's get this pony-show on the road."

|||••••••••••••••••••••|||

The elevator doors slid open with a quiet whoosh. The Team plus Nightwing piled out of the elevator, noting the endless bland white hallway. Artemis let out a low whistle. "Impressive." She stated plainly. M'gann nodded in agreement; it was a very impressive length for a hallway.

Nightwing and Kaldur shared an understanding glance. "We should split up to look for evidence. If they really are experimenting with time travel, it should not be too hard to find." Kaldur suggested.

Nightwing silently agreed. "Disperse throughout the rooms. Take your time; canvas the area carefully, but be quick. We don't have all the time in the world."

The Team took off down the hallway, coming in and out of the rooms. It was a constant stream of weaving bodies in the hallway. Shaking of the head when queried about possible evidence was common, as was the call of "nothing here." The sounds of doors softly clicking open or closed was the only other sound in the endless hallway. Finally, after several minutes of searching, they got their first finding.

"Uh, Nightwing?" Zatanna said hesitantly. Her eyes were wide, and she faced into a now open doorway. Her face showed both a mixture of surprise and horror.

Nightwing turned at the sound of his moniker being used. He frowned at her expression and started making his way towards her. His eyes followed her gaze into the room, not before noticing the plaque on the wall stating _Room 905_. It was pristine and white and smelled sterile, much like that of a medical ward. Countertops were topped with various doctors equipment, as well as heart monitors, IV drips, and a portable X-Ray machine scattered strategically across the room. In the center was a metal operating table.

And on that table was a person. A person, most definitely male and in their early twenties, with closed eyes rimmed by freckles faded with age, a shock of red hair, pale skin, wearing an insulated white suit with a red lightning bolt insignia, and....

....And _oh my god_. Nightwing's mouth went dry, his hands beginning to tingle, his toes completely numb. One thought, one name, was running through his mind.

_Wally._

|||••••••••••••••••••••|||

**_(A/N): Now this is where you get the chance to choose! I could either continue this story as gen/no pairings, or I could make it into Birdflash. It's up to all of you. Just comment below and either write GEN or write BIRDFLASH. I'll collect the votes, then write the next chapter based on all of your votes. If the votes are extremely close, then I'll end the story here, then write two separate spinoffs. (But it'd kinda be inconvenient for me.) If really nobody votes, then I'll just continue this one as gen. So please, comment & vote ASAP!_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry that this took so long! I meant to get it done and posted earlier (by like, 3 months) but I've just been dealing with a lot. Schoolwork, personal issues, the death of someone very dear to me, shitty Internet, etc. BUT ITS FINALLY HERE. :D I'll try to keep up with updating, but it may take a while. Have patience and persevere!


	5. Unity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I've decided to continue this story as GEN! There will, however, be a spinoff for the Birdflash fans! I'll try and link it into a series for ya'll if you're interested :D

Zatanna backed away from the doorway. "Is that....?" She trailed of, choking on her words in shock.

The rest of the Team began to take notice and drew closer. They were given a clear view when Nightwing's feet unstuck from the floor and moved forward. They too began to take on looks of confusion and surprise.

Nightwing, however, was now standing over the older-looking Wally. He drew to gloved fingers up to his neck, and let out a shaky sigh of relief when he found a strong pulse. He allowed the hidden lock pick to slide out of his uniform and began undoing the metal restraints holding his friend to the table.

After unlocking the restraints, Nightwing paused, his hand hovering over a part of the suit where a large rip left some of the skin exposed. One of his hands went up to Wally's forehead and he frowned. "Just what I thought." He said aloud.

"Uh, what's wrong?" M'gann asked. She could probably sense his worry.

"His particles are overcharged from pushing his speed too fast." Nightwing began to explain quickly. He scooped Wally up once more and swiftly walked out the door. "His body's trying to both adapt to it and to slow it, but it seems like neither are working. If we can't find a way to slow his particles, then it can lead to elevated temperatures, organ failure....it's basically turning his insides to mush. The scientists here must have put him in cryonic-freeze to preserve him, before they started experimenting."

The Team, who'd been trying to keep up with him, showed equal looks of mortification. "Wait, what about the mission?" Artemis pointed out bluntly.

Nightwing opened the elevator doors and got in. "Abort it. We got the proof that we needed. If we don't get out of here soon, he'll die."

The others piled into the elevator, and hit the button to go back to the floor they originally came from. The elevator began to move, and before they knew it, the silence was broken with the ding of the elevator stopping. The doors slid open to meet a large shadow. A very large shadow.

The Team tensed and looked up. A giant, extremely bulky man stared down at them with a wicked, toothy grin. Nightwing narrowed his eyes. He dropped Wally into an unsuspecting Superboy's arms and walked out of the elevator. " _Blockbuster_." He stated evenly.

The wicked smile got even wider. "Nightwing. _So_ good to see you again." His voice was eerily deep and menacing, and it made many of the members of the Team shiver.

Nightwing, however, was unfazed. He crossed his arms over his chest, his mouth in a grim line. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same."

There was a moment of high tension, a moment of silence dragging on for what seemed like a long time, with the two squared up across from each other. It was Blockbuster who broke the tension. "I was sent here as a deal with Cadmus. They wanted me to come after the Baby Flash after they found out he was still alive, to help them with some sort of experiment. I refused, but I didn't have much say in it. Now I am looking for a way home, so I can beat their puny asses for sending me here without my consent."

"You and me both." Nightwing paused, as if contemplating something. "How about I cut you a deal? I'll find us a way home and even help you with Cadmus, _if_ you let us pass, and if you can provide me with all the information you can on the experiment." He held his hand up towards the giant.

"Deal." Blockbuster took the hand with another menacing grin. With that, he stepped out of the way.

"Copy the information on a flash drive and I'll be here in two days, at around 02:00 hours. Come alone." Nightwing motioned for the others to follow, and they passed the giant cautiously.

"You're _friends_ with the _enemy_?" Superboy growled accusingly after they rounded the corner. His blue eyes sparkled with anger and distrust.

"No, _not_ friends. I just wanted to avoid fighting. Blockbuster can leave particularly nasty wounds when he wants to. Besides, we have to get out of here as fast as possible."

Superboy looked down at the older red-head that still lay in his arms. He'd begun breathing harder and more irregularly. His skin was also becoming increasingly warmer. Nightwing was right; they had to get him medical help as soon as they could.

|||••••••••••••••••••••|||

As soon as they exited the Cadmus building and took off in the Bioship, Kaldur called in for medical help. Black Canary said she'd set up the medical ward for treatment, but when she questioned him on who was hurt, Nightwing cut them off.

"We'll explain later." He told Black Canary brusquely. "Call Batman and Flash. Have them meet us there. Get Pieter Cross, too." He ended the call.

The rest of the way back to the mountain was spent in silence. The only sound was the harsh breaths from the unconscious speedster, and the soft purr of the Bioship.

M'gann had reconfigured the Bioship to have a sort of medical table. They'd settled older Wally on this, using Robin's cape as a pillow. Nightwing hadn't stopped glancing worriedly over at his friend from his seat.

They finally reached their destination within the next 5 minutes. The Team began to unstrap themselves from their seats. Nightwing swiftly undid his and stood. He took Wally into his arms and exited the Bioship, the Team following closely behind. They were immediately greeted by Black Canary, Pieter Cross, Flash, and Batman.

All four of them showed looks of surprise when they caught sight of just who he was carrying. He could tell even Batman was intrigued, even if he didn't show it directly.

Black Canary, ever the most calm one in such a dire or confusing situation, was the first to take charge. "Flash, go get a stretcher." She ordered.

In a split second, Flash was gone, and then back again with a stretcher in tow. He was oddly quiet, his face still marred by his surprise.

Nightwing set Wally on the stretcher and took a step backward. Pieter Cross and Black Canary rushed forward to start assessing the situation. Meanwhile, Batman observed quietly, and Flash just stood by awkwardly.

Pieter Cross took out a small pen-light and shone it in each of Wally's green eyes. "Pupils are fully dilated and unresponsive." He put the pen-light back into his pocket. His fingers found their way to Wally's neck, his eyes fixed to a watch on the other hand. "Heartbeat is too quick, even for a speedster. We need to regulate it or he'll go into cardiac arrest." Pieter Cross, however, wasn't finished yet. His eyes travelled to Nightwing. "But first we need an idea of what we're dealing with."

Nightwing didn't miss a beat in answering. "He pushed himself to run too fast, and was overcharged with energy from a chrysalistic Magnetic Field Disrupter. His particles are overexerted. He's got a high and still rising temperature, and he's been unconscious since we found him."

"Thank you, Nightwing." Black Canary said. "Well take care of him from here."

Nightwing cast his eyes towards the ground as Pieter Cross and Black Canary left with Wally, Flash towing behind. He felt Batman's gaze on him, and the Team behind him.

At the last moment, he made a decision. One that could possibly risk his identity, and maybe even the timeline, but he needed to tell them. Needed to get it off his chest.

"We though he was dead." He said at last. He kept his voice quiet, low. "We'd just stopped an organization called the Light from teaming up with a group of aliens that called themselves the Reach. The Reach wasn't done with us. They had an endgame....to destroy all of Earth. They'd set up Magnetic Field Disruptors all over the world. Sporadic weather patterns began to pop up everywhere. With some help from an unlikely source, we created an anti-virus. Nearly every superhero, even formerly retired ones, were spread out all over the world trying to stop the MFDs before they reached their unstoppable state, the chrysalis stage. We thought we'd succeeded in stopping all twenty MFDs. But we'd miscounted. There was a twenty-first, in the North Pole. We sent Flash and another speedster, Impulse, to take care of it. They didn't make it in time. The MFD reached its chrysalis stage, and a vortex grew around it. One of our temporary allies did some fast thinking; the only chance was to reverse the flow, to run in the opposite direction of vortex. Yet even with both of them running at their top speeds, they didn't have enough combined kinetic energy to rival the vortex. Kid Flash sent himself there without a second thought. He'd been formerly retired, trying to live a normal life. I guess you can take off the suit, but you can never shed yourself of your hero instincts. With his added kinetic energy, they finally had enough to out power the vortex. Earth's magnetic field had began to stabilize, but Kid Flash's slower speed turned him into an exit valve for the chrysalis energy. They stopped the crisis....but at a cost. Kid Flash had completely ceased to exist."

At the end of his long explanation, he looked up again. Batman had his mouth set in a thin line. Nightwing could tell he was assessing the story, fully absorbing it.

When Nightwing turned around to look at the Team, he saw their varying expressions. He took in Connor's furrowed eyebrows, M'gann's wide eyes, Artemis' frown, Wally's gaping mouth, Zatanna's cocked head, Kaldur's saddened face, and Robin's careful glare.

"Wait a minute, I though you were from, like, really far into the future? Other me looked like he was, I don't know, twenty-two?" Wally brought up a valid question.

Nightwing looked towards Batman again. He wasn't saying anything, wasn't protesting or interjecting. "I never said that." He said at last.

The Team began sharing looks, their expressions changing slightly, and their hands making small motions. Nightwing could tell they were having a silent conversation through the mind link. About him, no doubt.

When a ripple of surprise passed over all of them, except Robin, he steeled himself for what was coming. They all looked toward him again, studying him carefully. _They know. They know. They know_.

"Who _are_ you?"

 _They know_.

"You're only, what, two years younger than Wally?"

 _They know_.

"You said you were _a Robin_."

_They know._

" _Our_ Robin is two years younger than Wally."

_They know._

"And as far as we know, there's only _one_ kid in the Bat Clan right now."

_The know._

"I wasn't exactly trying to hide my identity." Nightwing said at last. He kept a steady gaze on the Team, when his instincts were telling him to _run, get out of there._

"How could you not tell us?" Artemis snarled. She pointed a finger at him accusingly. "We're your teammates! Or are we, in the future? 'Cause there's a lot you're not telling us _Nightwing_."

"I can assure you that you're all my friends. More like family, really. I didn't tell you because I didn't want to threaten the time stream. I'm not supposed to be here. My objective is just to get home as soon as possible without causing major damages to the space-time continuum. Besides, would you have believed me if I just waltzed through that portal claiming to be your Robin all grown up? No? You wouldn't? I didn't think so."

"Hey, the sarcasm is very unneeded, buddy." Wally; younger, more freckled Wally, crossed his arms and put on a pouty face. "We're trying to interrogate you here."

"Sorry, it's just in my nature."

"To make a joke out of everything? Even in the most serious situations?"

"Oh boy, your definitely in for the ride of your lives. Trust me when I say that you never want to go on patrol with me alone." Nightwing let out a snort of laughter, as if he'd just told a really funny pun. Rather, it was more of an inside thing.

Robin's face lit up with realization. For the first time in the conversation, he spoke. "You've got your own name, and your own city. Why? Do we..... _leave_?"

Nightwing smiled sadly. He knew exactly what Robin was asking. At his age, he didn't want to leave Gotham or Batman behind either. It was one of his biggest fears. Yet it was destined to happen. A baby bird's got to leave the nest sometime. "That I unfortunately can't answer. You're just going to have to figure that out on your own. Believe me, there are ups and downs, but it is pretty astrous."

Various groans of exasperation came from the Team at his made-up word. "Twenty years old and he still butchers the English language!" Wally exclaimed. He threw an arm up to dramatically cover his face and pretended to faint. Connor, who'd been standing behind him, caught him, although he looked very displeased.

Nightwing, however, put his right hand up to his chest. His face was morphed into that of pure ( _of course cleverly faked_ ) hurt. "Butcher? Excuse you, I _perfect_ it!"

|||••••••••••••••••••••|||

The next three hours consisted of Nightwing dodging the Team's questions while simultaneously waiting for Wally to wake up. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Black Canary came into the living room and saved him. The Team had started hounding him again, and he'd just tried to ignore them by reading a book he'd found in the library.

"Nightwing." Black Canary called to get his attention. He tilted his head slightly towards her to show that he'd heard her. "He's waking up."

At that, Nightwing stiffened. He closed the book quickly and stood up. Setting the book down, he took note of the sudden silence from the Team. He walked out of the room without a single word, Black Canary at his heels.

When he made it to the Medical Bay and pushed the doors open, he took everything in within a split second.

Wally lay covered chest-high by white sheets. His exposed arms were covered in wires. A breathing tube lay discarded on the bedside table. He was surrounded by various machines; a heart monitor, an IV, etc. A wet cloth lay on his forehead. His color was looking better, almost back to his usual pale skin tone than the former reddened tint.

Flash sat in a chair by his side. He had his cowl down, and was smiling lightly down at his older protégé. When Nightwing entered, he looked over at him. Wally seemed to follow his gaze, his head lolling towards the door. His emerald green eyes were half-lidded, and had a dull sheen to them. He was probably still exhausted. But as soon as his eyes connected with Nightwing's masked ones, he grinned lightly. "Hey 'Wing."

Nightwing returned the grin and walked up closer to him. "Hey Wally." Flash, sensing the need for privacy, stood up and clapped Nightwing on the shoulder before leaving. Nightwing sat down in the seat. "How're you feeling?"

"Like I'm an asthmatic that just ran a marathon at normal speed."

Nightwing chuckled at his response. "That'll do it."

Wally's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes as he exhaled. "What even happened? Uncle B was explaining part of it to me, but I'm still really confused." The smirk reappeared on his lips. "It might be because Uncle B sucks at describing."

Nightwing peeled off his mask to reveal his cerulean blue eyes. "Well...." He began softly, the smile never leaving his face. "Did he mention that we're in the past?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we're approaching the end! Only two more chapters left....dang. :( But fear not! There WILL be a sequel ;)


	6. Solidity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I felt like this chapter was a bit rushed. :/ I might go back and redo it once school's over. I'll have the next chapter up maybe in two months, depending on how testing goes.

It took only a day for Wally to be up and walking.

Nightwing could tell he was still sore and achy, but not in total pain. The red-head would walk with a stiff air to him and would stretch his legs and back often. He'd also developed a habit of massaging his thighs inconspicuously with his palms while sitting down.

Wally was also still on a cocktail of drugs. It led his movements to be sluggish, and he was exhausted easily. They'd reduced his medication intake, so his awareness gradually increased with each passing hour. As did his need to be active.

Black Canary had still told him to take it easy, however. Or, rather, she _forced_ him to. She'd restricted him to just the medical wing. The farthest he was allowed to walk to was the end of the hallway, and that was with another adult figure accompanying him. To Wally, it still wasn't enough physical exercise.

It really shouldn't have been that much of a surprise that he immediately broke that rule. Of course, he wasn't alone. Nightwing had gladly accepted being his accomplice in crime. At the beginning of the second day since his return, Wally was awake and fidgety as ever. They began their journey far away from the confining white walls that very day.

They wandered the halls for a good while and passed the time by talking. Nightwing told him everything that Wally had missed in the year he was gone. He tried to keep them all positive as possible, leaving out the hard weeks after Wally's death. He talked about how Wally now had twin cousins and the growing Bat-family and the Team's latest accomplishments.

Nightwing had to admit that this was strange. He didn't think he was ever going to talk to Wally again. Even before Wally's supposed death, they weren't as close as they used to be. They didn't get together to talk about life and the little things like they did when they were younger. That was the one thing Nightwing never figured out. He didn't know what had caused the rift between him and Wally. It could have been the distance or their busy, separated lives or the fact that sometimes friends just lose touch.

Nonetheless, it was nice to chat like this again. Just two friends talking like they'd never even stopped. And they were so caught up in their conversation that they didn't realize they had stalkers until halfway through a story about Nightwing and Roy taking Kaldur and Connor to their first bar.

"-and I swear to God, it was the funniest thing I've ever seen. So Kal's passed out; was just staring out into the distance for the longest time before- THUNK. His forehead hits the tabletop. He's out cold, drool and everything. Meanwhile, Roy's still looking for Con. He's searching the bar wall to wall. Absolutely no sight of him. Then Roy decides that we should look outside. I go with him, thinking Kal would be okay alone. I mean, the bartender was right there, and he's probably not going to wake up for another hour at the least. Roy and I don't need long to find Con. He's right around the corner from the bar in an alleyway. Some hooker had him pinned. Turns out she was trying to recruit him for a porno."

He paused when Wally burst out into laughter, a reminiscent grin on his own face. "I swear, if we'd come just three seconds later, he would've said yes. That's how out of it he was. Roy tells the chick no, then starts getting really mad because the hooker keeps arguing with him. The poor chick just won't drop it. Of course it's _my_ duty to steer them both away; Con before he collapses- because trust me, he was looking a _little_ tipsy- and Roy before he knocks the hooker straight on her fish-netted ass. I grab them both, drag them back to the bar, and sit them back down in our stools. For some reason, that gets Con thinking we're all in some sort of polyamorous relationship. He kept calling Roy and I _Husband 1_ and _Husband 2_ the rest of the night. And then Kal decides it's a good time to wake up....." He trailed off once he felt the presences behind him. The tell-tale hairs standing up on his neck and the way his skin prickled was enough of a sign. He shot Wally a glance before looking behind him.

The Team froze in their steps at having been caught. Guilt overwrote the curiosity that had previously been on all their faces.

Nightwing shook his head in exasperation. "I'll continue the story later." He said to Wally casually. This wasn't a conversation to be having in front of somewhat still-innocent children.

"There's more?" Wally asked, bewildered

"Oh, _boy_ is there _more_."

Wally face flushed paler than his usual skin tone. He rolled his eyes in exasperation. " _Dear god_."

"I want to hear more of this story." Artemis piped up, arms crossed and an intrigued smile on her face. Her eyes glimmered with curiosity and something else. Something almost dark. She was probably already planning her future blackmail.

"Trust me, 'Mis, you really don't." Nightwing motioned for them to follow as they began walking again. He decided heading for the kitchen. He was betting that Wally was starving, and truth be told so was he. The Team was up to join if they wanted to. He could be a mad cook when he had the chance, especially since he picked up a lot of tips from Alfred.

"'Wing always tells the best stories." Wally was explaining to the Team as they walked along. "You'll enjoy 'em in the future. Of course, some of them aren't for the light-hearted."

Nightwing grinned at that. There was a double meaning in there. Some of his stories had a lot of blood and gore in them. These particular ones he liked to save just for Wally. The red-head hated how accurately Nightwing could describe the sickening crack of a man's bones breaking or an open fracture or the slicing of skin from a butcher knife.

There was also his more.... _adult_ stories. Being a vigilante, he knew everything that went on in his city.

And when he says everything, he means _everything_.

|||••••••••••••••••••••|||

It wasn't until an hour later that Black Canary found them. Nightwing had just finished washing the dishes with the help of M'gann when she stalked into the room, scowl on her face. She crossed her arms firmly. Boy did she mean business.

"What do you think you're doing out here?" She hissed, venomous blue eyes flicking from older Wally to Nightwing back to Wally. The Team just watched on with curiosity, confusion, and a bit of wariness. An angry Black Canary was nothing like a docile Black Canary.

The older speedster squeaked in terror, body stiffening at the prospect of being caught. "Run! Scatter!" He cried, zooming away at super speed. Some habits just never grow old.

The Team just shared bemused looks. Artemis made some comment about him being a not-so-nice word for a scaredy cat, even five plus years later.

Nightwing shook his head at his best friend's antics. He dried his hands with a dish towel and stepped forward. "Just be glad we're still here. With how antsy he was just two hours ago, you'd be lucky if you met up with him in Europe by teleportation. I swear, he could've run around the world six times and still have the energy of an ADD kid on a sugar high."

Black Canary blatantly ignored the humorous attempt to get her mood to lighten. "I specifically said not to leave the medical wing. He's still not fully up to par. There's still a risk that if he pushes himself too much, his particles can re-overcharge. It's best for him to stay where we can monitor him."

"Relax, BC. I already checked him over this morning. He's 97.87% back to normal."

"I still think it's too much of a risk. I'll allow it just this once. He is not, however, allowed to go outside of this mountain. Understood?"

"Sure thing, BC. Absolutely." From behind him, M'gann could see his crossed fingers. She stifled a giggle for fear of ratting him out.

Black Canary gave him one last suspecting glare before exiting the room.

And Nightwing went searching for Wally so they could do exactly the opposite of what she'd just said.

|||••••••••••••••••••••|||

It's been a nice, long, relaxing day for the Team plus Nightwing and future Wally. They'd started out the day by going out. Nightwing had taken them to the heart of Happy Harbor, and they'd split up into three groups to go shopping and exploring.

At noon, they met back up for lunch at a casual restaurant. Nightwing insisted that it was all on him. The rest of them wondered where he'd gotten the money to pay for it. It wasn't like he came here with a couple hundred dollars, right?

Afterwards, they'd gone to the park to play some competitive volleyball, tennis, and ultimate frisbee. They had to teach Connor and M'gann how to play, and even so it was amusing watching them try. The Team, even their younger counterparts, also discovered that Nightwing and future Wally were totally kickass at volleyball. It was like watching professional athletes. In the end, Nightwing was always the winner.

They finished off the day with some ice cream by the shore. Younger Wally had to fight off a seagull that kept trying to steal his cone, while Robin and Artemis laughed at his struggles. Still they wondered where Nightwing had gotten the money from.

When they got back to the Cave, it was around five o'clock. Black Canary was there to scold them for leaving. She even threatened to throw Nightwing and older Wally in special holding cells and phone the dreaded Bat-butler.

After that, they dispersed. Nightwing wasn't sure where the Team was, but he immediately made it known he was going to work out and train a bit. Wally was sent back to the Med Bay for a checkup, last he knew.

It was much later when Nightwing emerged from the training room. The sun had long since submerged into the ocean outside the mountain. He walked out with his sweaty workout clothes slung over his shoulder, still adjusting his costume, which he'd just put back on. He fastened his belt to his hips, snapped on his gloves, and slid his escrima sticks into their holders. He made a quick stop at his temporary room before venturing to find the Team and his best friend.

Nightwing ended up finding them all in the living room area. It really was the go-to place to find them. Chances are they were always there.

Older Wally looked up as he entered the room. The red-head gave him a wide grin from his spot on the couch. "Hey 'Wing! We're having a movie night, complete with a Paranormal Activity marathon and pizza! You up to join?"

Nightwing leaned over the back of the couch. "Sorry, I'd love to stay, but I've got a date tonight."

"What?" Wally's look was confused. Typical. Typical, poor, confused Wally.

"Shhh, keep it on the down-low." Nightwing held a finger up to Wally's lips. His tone was joking, sarcastic. "Nobody else can know about our forbidden love. I already have to sneak into Cadmus just to see him. You don't wanna make it harder on me, now do you?" Nightwing batted his eyelashes underneath the mask, rubbing up close to Wally and raking a gloved finger down his arm. The Team continued to look on as the future heroes fooled around.

Wally shoved him off with a fake disgusted look. "Do I even _wanna_ know?"

Nightwing laughed heartily before giving a vague answer. "Blockbuster." He saw the Team twitch at the name. He never did explain that to them. Oh well.

Wally raised an eyebrow. "Never mind. I _really_ don't wanna know." He was being sarcastic, that much anyone could tell. They were just keeping the mood light and joking.

"Relax." Nightwing flicked a wrist nonchalantly. "I'm just going to slip in and get some information from him. Easy as pie."

Wally gave him a skeptical look. "Uh huh, alright. Just be careful, a'ight? I don't want to have to come rescue your ass."

Nightwing slapped him on the shoulder and sauntered off towards the Zeta Tube. "Don't worry, man. I got this."

|||••••••••••••••••••••|||

The meeting was a success. There was nobody waiting to ambush him; just a grumpy Blockbuster. They traded information key to their return for some time. Then Nightwing collected the flash drive and made his leave.

When Nightwing got back to the Cave, he was surprised to find that nobody was in the main room. The Team was supposed to be watching a movie series in here. Senses on high alert, his feet led him down the hallways until he finally heard voices coming from the briefing room. He lingered in the doorway before entering, but kept to the shadows for observation.

The Team, along with some curious Leaguers, were all gathered in a semicircle. Unfortunately, Nightwing couldn't see what they were gathered around from his vantage point. Nor could he clearly decipher the topic over the loud chatter. He crept around the edge of the room, still in the shadows, so he could get a better look.

Turns out the Team and Leaguers were so interested in two people. Two people that Nightwing recognized very well.

One was unmistakably the second Kid Flash, AKA Bart Allen. The young teen was grinning cheekily, goggles pushed up into his wind-blown hair to reveal ecstatic green eyes. He was standing directly in front of Wally, the older Wally of their time, as if he was afraid he was going to slip away again. He looked so happy, maybe a little pained. The young speedster was listening intently to his elder cousin avidly as he told all about his "after-death" experience.

The other was his little brother and the third Robin, Tim Drake. He was standing awkwardly next to Bart, his arms crossed loosely and face emotionless. His poor little brother always looked either extremely uncomfortable or like he had a metaphorical stick up his ass.

Nightwing grinned at Tim's lack of attention. He still didn't know he was there. There was a lot Tim still needed to learn.

Once he was positioned behind his brother, he launched forward with a joyous cry, tackling Tim into a large hug. Tim staggered forwards from his weight with a squeak of surprise. He felt the younger's muscles tense, but he made no move to throw him off. He also took note of their onlookers' various reactions. It was mostly surprise, amusement, and annoyance.

Nightwing pulled back off of his brother, eyes sparkling behind the mask. His grin was so wide it could split his face.

"What took you so long?"

Tim scoffed at his ungrateful greeting. "I hope you know that next time, I'm just leaving you here." It was just light and playful banter, no truth behind it. Nightwing knew Tim would save his sorry ass time and time again if he had to.

He also picked up on Artemis' not-so-subtle comment about sassy birdies. Two could play at that game. Buuuut he really didn't want to.

Nightwing ruffled his hair, enjoying how Tim sidestepped his reach and smoothed his hair with a noise of protest. He turned to meet Bart's wide, ecstatic eyes.

"Hey 'Wing! So you _are_ alive!"

When Nightwing tilted his head in a sort of confused puppy dog look, Bart continued. "We made bets on if you'd died or almost did or whatnot- ow!" He broke off as Time elbowed him in the ribs. He rubbed his now sore chest and returned Tim's dirty glare. "Anyways, _someone_ owes me twenty bucks."

Nightwing picked up on the hint. He turned to look at his younger brother in false betrayal. "Timmy? _You_? I'm hurt." He gripped his heart with this hand, bottom lip trembling.

Tim scowled at his antics. "Lets just go home." He completely ignored their former topic. "Say your goodbyes now. As soon as we hit the button on the Boom Tube, it resets this time. They won't remember a thing." That last part was more directed at everyone.

Nightwing collected that they'd modified a Boom Tube, most likely to transport more than one person and to somehow reset the time stream. He was still new in quantum physics. All that sciency cosmic stuff involving space and time and algorithms made his brain hurt.

But I guess it was time for goodbyes. He was thankful for all their help, but he really didn't feel like saying much. None of them would remember anyways.

While Wally congregated with the Flash, Bart, and his younger self; he decided to make his rounds. He gave Wonder Woman a meaningful nod, shook hands with Superman, drew Black Canary in for a hug, joked lightly with each of the Team members while teasing them about their future selves, and finally ended with Batman. The two shared a long, silent conversation.

It was nothing major. Just small talk, really. Like, _good luck_ and _see you in the future_ , combined together in small gestures.

Finally, Nightwing smiled genuinely at his mentor. He allowed the gloved hand that reached out to rest on his shoulder. He looked over to see if Wally was done too. The two locked eyes and Wally nodded to him, telling he was ready.

The four future-goers gathered a bit farther away. Tim held a cylindrical container not unlike the one that had brought Nightwing to this time, although slightly modified. Wally looked excited to be going home, albeit a little anxious. Bart was standing next to him like a loyal dog, and Nightwing was gazing warmly at the past Team and Leaguers. "Thank you for all your help." He said quietly.

"Anytime." Black Canary returned his warmth.

"No more secrets though, okay?" Artemis piped up.

Nightwing's lips quirked up in a slight smile. "Can't promise that."

"Wait, what about Blockbuster?" Younger Wally brang up the topic suddenly. "Weren't you supposed to bring him with you?"

Nightwing saw Tim tense out of the corner of his eye. "Blockbuster's here?" His younger brother asked.

He cringed when some of the Leaguers took on suspicious looks. Superman was the first to voice the question. "Who's Blockbuster?"

"Don't worry about it." Nightwing rushed. He really didn't feel like explaining this. Not now. "We can get him later." He added more to Tim than anyone else.

He gave the Team and Leaguers a quick wave and motioned for Tim to ready the Boom Tube. "Well, looks like we gotta get going." He continued.

He ignored Tim's exasperated sigh. No doubt it was directed at him and his purposeful avoiding of the topic.

He was glad for Bart's cheerful goodbye for the sole fact it furthered him from explaining. "See you all on the other side!" The young speedster crowed with a salute.

Then Tim clicked the button. The four were immediately immersed in bright white as they were being whisked away to a time they called home.

|||••••••••••••••••••••|||

 **IMPORTANT NOTICE**  
Dear readers,  
I am going to be **CHANGING MY USERNAME**. For everyone with bookmarks on any of my stories, you will most likely need to **re-bookmark** afterwards. Other than that, have a good day!


	7. Accountability

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here it is folks! This is the end of The Art of Quantum Physics! Fear not; a sequel will be on its way!

Things had gone back to normal since the time-traveling incident. Well, as normal as it can get for a part-time vigilante.

After Nightwing had been whisked away, Batman fought his way to freedom. He'd been found by the League an hour after escaping, collapsed in an alleyway two miles away from the deadly bunker. He was battered, bruised, and bleeding, but thankfully very much alive.

Upon his waking, he'd immediately begun the search for his son. He'd worked hard to decipher where exactly Nightwing had been sent to, then started hashing out how to get him back. His hours of devotion really touched Nightwing's heart.

Nightwing had made his return to the Team as well. They welcomed him back warmly, and reinstated him as leader. Kaldur had stepped down to make room for him. His days were once again spent at the Watchtower.

His nights, however, didn't go straight back to normal. Batman had started off with a strict no-patrol policy. The group that was originally after them was still out there. Nightwing wasn't quite happy with this, of course. So Batman, sick of listening to his son's constant complaining for 84 long hours, let him patrol once more. That is, under one condition: he had to take another hero with him. Usually it was either Tim or, for the longest time until the incident, Barbara, but sometimes Artemis tagged along too.

Dick had begun visiting home more often as well. He would say that it was because he missed Alfred's cooking, but in reality, he was doing it for Tim and Damian. Damian had been struggling to adapt to his new home, and he'd been getting into a lot of fights with Tim. Whenever Dick was there, he'd keep their arguments at bay.

Besides, Blüdhaven could get pretty lonely. He really didn't have many friends there. Well, unless you count the people that came around for patrol. Ever since he'd quit his job as a police officer, he'd had more time on his hands, in between the hours patrol and Team business of course.

Wally had been settling in quite well as well. He had been reunited with his family and friends, whom had been grateful for his "resurrection." He and Artemis had officially broken it off, instead opting to be just (albeit very awkward) friends. He'd decided to quit the college he'd previously been at, and had gone back to living in Central City with his Aunt and Uncle. He even went back to being a hero. He currently functions as the second Flash, filling in for Barry every so often when the original is busy.

They didn't forget about Blockbustet, either. A number of heroes went back to retrieve the beast, who, after dealing with Cadmus, disappeared from the face of the planet. An 88.43% positive facial recognition match suggests he may be taking a long, relaxing vacation in Cozumel, Mexico. Oh well, less trouble for Nightwing to deal with.

No paradoxes had occurred that anyone knew of in the meantime. No alterations, not in the slightest. Everyone was fine and healthy.

In fact, the more Nightwing thought about it, the more he started to think that the time trip was meant to happen. He shook his head to clear it. He'd thought about it before, and all that landed him with was a headache and more questions.

He shifted his weight around on his gargoyle perch. Another slow night on patrol. Thankfully, nobody was available to come patrol with him, so he was on his own for the night. He enjoyed the alone time once in a while.

The city lights twinkled carelessly below, casting an orange glow towards the skies above. It was one of the rare nights in which you could actually see the moon through the city's haze. The summer air was just the right temperature; cool but with a hint of humidity.

It was a perfect night. And with little to no activity happening on the streets, Nightwing was starting to get bored.

Then an idea formed in his head.

Bruce was taking up a lead on Twoface's whereabouts with Steph, now Batgirl, and Tim, now Red Robin. They were only to be contacted on absolute emergency. Nightwing knew they'd be gone for a long while, if not the entire night.

He also knew that there was an extremely bored 10-year-old stuck at home. Bruce had deemed the mission too dangerous for someone so inexperienced and new to the hero gig. So Damian was probably angrily beating the crap out of a punching bag. This was a usual occurrence when he was barred from patrol.

Maybe he should give Dami a little relief, take him out to see the sights. With his costume on. And his utility belt. And maybe in Blüdhaven. After all, he'd be doing Bruce a favor by saving his training equipment for total obliteration.

Nightwing smirked to himself as he leaped form the gargoyle. It was going to be a fun night.


End file.
